Extract from Nur al-Uyun (Biography of the Prophet) by Imam ibn Sayyid an-Nas | ridawipress.org
The Messenger of Allah married Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, the daughter of Khuwaylid.1
He then married Sawdah (bint Zamah ibn Qays ibn Abdu Shams ibn Abdu Wudd ibn Nasr ibn Malik ibn Hisl ibn Aamir ibn Lu-ayy). When she became older, the Messenger of Allah wished to divorce her; so she gifted her days2 to A’isha and said, “I have no inclination towards men. But I wish to be raised among your wives on the Day of Judgment.”3 May Allah Most High be well pleased with her.
He then married A’isha (bint Abu Bakr Abdullah ibn Usman ibn Aamir ibn Amr ibn Kaab ibn Saad ibn Taym ibn Murrah). He married her in Makkah two years before the migration4 to Madinah. It is also said that it was three years prior, when she was a girl of six or seven. She went to live with him5 in Madinah when she was nine. When the Messenger of Allah passed away, she was eighteen. She passed away at the age of fifty-eight or thereabouts. The Messenger of Allah did not marry a virgin other than her; her appellation was Umm ‘Abdullah. May Allah Most High be well pleased with her.
He then married Hafsah (bint ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab ibn Nufayl ibn Abd al-Uzza ibn Riyah ibn Abdullah ibn Qurt ibn Razah ibn Adiy ibn Kaab). It is reported that the Messenger of Allah divorced her and the Angel Jibra’il came to him with a message: “Verily, Allah Most High commands you to take Hafsah back; as she fasts and prays immensely.” In another report: “As a mercy for Umar.” May Allah Most High be well pleased with both of them.
The Messenger of Allah married Umm Habibah (Ramlah bint Abu Sufyan Sakhr ibn Harb ibn Umayyah ibn Abdu Shams ibn Abdu Manaf). The marriage took place while she was in Abyssinia. Najashi paid a dower of four hundred gold coins6 on behalf of the Messenger of Allah. Sayyidina ‘Uthman ibn Affan stood as her kinsman.7 It is also said that it was Sayyidina Khalid ibn Sayid ibn al-Aas. She passed away in 44 AH. May Allah Most High be well pleased with her.
He married Umm Salamah (Hind bint Abi Umayyah ibn Al-Mughayrah ibn Abdullah ibn Umar ibn Makhzum). She passed away in 62 AH, and was the last of his blessed wives to leave this world. It is also said that it was Maymunah. May Allah Most High be well pleased with her.
He married Zaynab (bint Jahshibn Ri-ab ibn Yaamur ibn Sabirah ibn Murrah ibn Kabir ibn Ghanm ibn Dudan ibn Asad ibn Khuzaymah). She was the daughter of Umaymah, his paternal aunt. She passed away in Madinah, in the year 20 AH. She was the first to demise after the Messenger of Allah among his noble wives. May Allah Most High be well pleased with her.
He married Juwayriyah (bint Harith ibn Abu Dirar ibn Habib ibn Aayidh ibn Malik ibn al-Mustaliq). She was a comely lady, and was enslaved after the battle of Bani Mustalaq and taken by Sayyidina Thabit ibn Qays ibn Shammas, who then agreed to free her for a sum.8 She came to the Messenger of Allah seeking his help to pay the sum; the Messenger of Allah said to her: “If you wish, I can offer you a better arrangement. I shall pay the sum that is due, and take you in marriage.” She accepted it and the Messenger of Allah paid the due and married her. She passed away in the year 56 AH. May Allah Most High be well pleased with her.
He married Safiyyah (bint Huy’yi ibn Akhtab ibn Saanah ibn Thalabah ibn Ubayd ibn Kaab ibn Khazraj an-Nadiriyyah)9 from the progeny of [the Prophet] Harun. She was enslaved after the battle of Khaybar. The Messenger of Allah manumitted her and stipulated her manumission as her dower. She passed away in the year 50 AH. May Allah Most High be well pleased with her.
He married Maymunah (bint Harith ibn Hazim ibn Bujayr ibn Harim ibn Ruwaybah ibn Abdullah ibn Hilal ibn Aamir); and she was the maternal aunt of Sayyidina Khalid ibn Walid and Sayyidina Abdullah ibn Abbas. She was the last to marry the Messenger of Allah. She passed away in the year 51 or 66 AH; and if the latter date is validated, then she would be the last of his noble wives to leave this world. May Allah Most High be well pleased with her.
These were the noble wives who survived the Messenger of Allah (except Sayyida Khadijah).
According to the most reliable reports, the dower for every one of his noble wives was five hundred pieces of silver, except for Safiyyah and Umm Habibah. May Allah Most High be pleased with all of them.
Footnotes
1 He did not marry another lady so long as Sayyida Khadijah was alive.
2 If a person has many wives, it is necessary to appoint days for each of them equally and in turns.
3 So the Messenger of Allah did not divorce her and she passed away as one of his wives.
4 hijra
5 In Arab/Islamic cultures, the marriage or the contract takes place first and the bride goes to live with her husband after a short period. In the subcontinent, this is known as rukhsati.
6 dinar
7 waliy
8 This is known as mukatabah in legal parlance.
9 Belonging to the Banu Nadir, a Jewish tribe.